The One That Got Away
by koichii
Summary: In another life, she would never let him go. In another life. Fic for AsuCaga Day! Dedicated to TheXtell33! :)


**A/N: **So used to writing shounen-ai/yaoi thus finding it very difficult to write for a straight pairing. Seriously, it's been a long time since I've written something for AsuCaga!

Because it's AsuCaga Day, I dedicate this for a fellow AsuCaga fan: **TheXtell33**. She asked for a fic with an angsty genre but I'm not sure if I was able to comply to that requirement. Gomen nasai!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam SEED. I got the cover photo from: fyeahgundamseed of tumblr

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**THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY**

_"In another life, I would make you stay..."_

The two of them weren't really like those ordinary kids who went to school, met each other and fell in love in the process. No, their story was far more complicated than that.

He enlisted for the war at the young age of 15 while she was slowly being groomed into the world of politics and leadership of one of the most influential countries in the world.

That, coupled with the extraordinary way they met, cemented their reputation as not an ordinary couple -the Prince of ZAFT and the Lioness of Orb.

A melancholic smile crossed her lips as she stared at the ring that he gave her before he left for PLANTs. To her, it symbolised hope -hope that someday, in a world where there's no war, they would be together once more. It also stood for the promise he made when he swore fealty, not to PLANTs, but to her -that he would protect her, that they would protect each other.

But it was very naive of her to think that things would stay just as they were.

He had gone back to PLANTs and, swayed by Chairman Dullindal's manipulative words, re-enlisted. The action alone hurt her but his indecisiveness over important matters hurt the most. He was too confused that he arrived at the point of fighting against them.

He should've turned to her for support and help. Didn't they promise that they would protect each other?

But it wasn't important right now. He learnt his mistakes, though in a hard way, and went back to her side -well, not literally by her side but on the same side she's fighting for.

And she couldn't have asked anything more than that.

After a while, they were back again fighting on the same side, for the cause that she truly believe and the one that he came to wholeheartedly accept.

But nobody said it was that easy.

Of course he had decided to stay in Orb with her after the second war while her twin brother, Kira, went to assist Lacus in the PLANTs. The huge responsibilities of fixing the world damaged by the recent war were placed upon their shoulders and no matter how much people say that they're capable of making the world a better place because they're strong, it still didn't change the fact that it's time-consuming, a little bit infuriating and utterly tiresome that there were times she thought of running away to a very far place where no one could ever reach her.

And because of that heavy responsibility, none of them was able to stop even for just a minute to ponder on things like, what happened to them? Why did they drift apart? Or how are they going to fix it? No, they didn't.

Or more so, they couldn't.

In the end, she decided to take off the ring he gave her -the symbol of their promise, hope and love. It's not that she doesn't love him anymore. No, that's not the case. He would always have that special place in her heart that she would give to no one else.

He may not be her last but he would always be her first love.

But responsibilities weren't the only ones keeping them apart. She saw him with that red-haired girl he brought with him when he defected from ZAFT. Meyrin, was it? She saw them together when she was leaving for a meeting with the high council. The two were talking and then Meyrin said something to him which made him laugh.

Her heart lurched at the sight of him laughing. How long has it been since she's seen him laugh like that?

Then in some sort of strange ephipany, it dawned upon her. No, it was more of a bitter realisation, even a painful one.

They're not meant to be together. Not in this life, at least.

She wouldn't be able to give him the normalcy he absolutely deserved. Even before the final battle began, she'd slowly began the process of accepting that her main priority from now on would have to be Orb and the people. Any other things would come as second.

She have to do it, she have to sacrifice so that future generations wouldn't feel the pain and the loss caused by the war. She want them to pursue their own happiness and enjoy life to the fullest, unlike her who was forced to grow up rapidly because of the war. Never would she want to sow fear again to each and every hearts if she could do something to prevent it.

She couldn't afford to have her attention being divided. She couldn't afford to pursue her personal desires at the expense of the people's welfare. It's for the greater good.

To make the long story short, she have to let him go.

"Hello, Cagalli," she looked back and saw him standing by the door of her office, piles of folders in his hand. His eyes lingered on her hand for a moment, making her realise that she was still holding the ring he gave her. "I'm here to give these to you. I've already checked it but you can still take another look," he said as he placed the files atop her humongous desk.

"Thank you, Athrun," Cagalli said as she casually pocketed the ring on her pants' pocket, not really bothered if the bluenette had seen the ring or not. "Are you heading home now?" she asked as she approached her desk and sat on her swivel chair. She began sifting through the files he had given her. It seemed like she'd be working overtime tonight again.

"Not really. Meyrin's arriving from PLANTs today and she asked me to tour her around Orb. She didn't really have the luxury of time during her last visit here," Athrun replied, his voice calm.

Unsurprisingly, neither of them were uncomfortable with the mention of Meyrin. It seemed to her that they've reached an unspoken but mutual understanding about the status of their relationship -that the two of them would really never work out.

Maybe in a parallel world or maybe in their next life there would be a chance for them but not here, not now.

He needed someone who could love him and take care of him. In her situation, she didn't have the capacity to do that. He deserved someone else, someone better.

She gave him a smile that told him she understood, that she's fine with it, and it made calmed him down. "Send my regards to her then."

"Of course," His smile was wistful and there was a bit of sadness in reflected in those beautiful emerald orbs before it completely disappeared. "I'll see you around then and don't overwork yourself." He began walking towards the door. "Goodbye, Cagalli."

The way he said those words almost made Cagalli sigh. This is it. It's finally over between them. They're finally letting go. "Goodbye, Athrun."

In another life, they'll be together again. In another life, she'd make him stay. In another life, they would fulfill every broken promises they've made.

Yes, in another life.

_**Fin**_


End file.
